Brett Eldredge reveals why he’s glad success took “The Long Way”

ABC/Image Group LA This week, “The Long Way” becomes the seventh top-10 hit of Brett Eldredge’s career. To mark the occasion, Brett took a group of journalists “The Long Way” around his favorite Music City haunts.

Stops included the spot on the Warner building where Brett typically relieved himself during crazy nights out — now immortalized by his record label with a plaque. He also visited his former Nashville apartment, though the current resident didn’t come to the door when Brett knocked.

“It brought back a lot of memories, because I haven’t gone back to the original place I stayed when I first got to town,” Brett reflected. “And that’s a very infant stage of your career, where everything’s so magical and new and shiny, Disney-feel, you know? You don’t know what you’re about to get yourself into at that moment, so there’s such fond memories of that place.”

Brett even confessed he’s glad success took “The Long Way” at the start of his career.

“My first two songs… ‘Raymond’ got to like #22 or 23, which was a great start for me,” he recalled. “I was hoping it would be a big #1, but at the same time, I’m so glad it didn’t… Because it would’ve changed my career completely, and I wouldn’t have been ready.”

“My second single didn’t even really chart,” he continued. “I’m totally fine with that as well. And then, I really kind of got a grasp of what I wanted to go for. That’s when ‘Don’t Ya’ and ‘Beat of the Music’ and ‘Mean to Me’ — I really started writing all those songs, like over a six to twelve month period, and it just kinda started lining up.”

The Illinois native capped his “Long Way” tour with a laid-back performance at Rudy’s Jazz Room.